Sunday, 31 May 2009

Things I've learned from WolframAlpha

WolframAlpha is a new 'computational knowledge engine' from the same person/group that developed Mathematica. Despite comments in the IT media, it isn't a competitor to google, but is instead a a tool to find you the answer to questions, rather than finding where you can find the answer to questions.Of course it is early days but I've already learnt new things about chess and related topics. Firstly 'chess' is also a name for Bromegrass (a type of grass). It also has a connection to Pymetrozine, although I know not what that is, or what the connection is based on.70,095 people have the surname 'Fischer' in the United States, which makes it the 419th most common surname in that country. By comparison, typing in 'kasparov' actually gets you biographical information on the 13th World Champion.And if you search for the meaning of the word 'Checkmate' you get quite a bit of information on its linguistic roots, as well as its usage. It even lists some broader, related terms, including the perceptive 'crush'